Afghanistan's forgotten war crimes

Addressing the issue of war crimes will be one of Afghanistan's toughest challenges to date.

Tony Bransby

The execution of almost 5,000 Afghan citizens in 1978-1979 under the Soviet-installed government gives a horrific insight into Afghanistan's past war crimes - a history that has been largely forgotten in the midst of Afghanistan's continuing struggles, writes Shaheen Whyte.

Much of the media coverage on Afghanistan in recent years has centred on the security and rebuilding efforts. Sadly, the issue of war crimes, mass atrocities and human rights abuses has received little publicity, or at least faded into the background with the exception of a few human rights organisations.

It is only in the past few weeks that the issue has come back on the agenda thanks to a comprehensive, albeit disturbing, report from the Dutch Prosecution Office on war crimes committed in Afghanistan during the 1978-1979 Communist reign.

On September 17, 2013, the Dutch government published a death list of nearly 5,000 Afghan citizens executed under Afghanistan's Soviet-backed government of 1978-1979. The Dutch government released the documents after the Netherlands Police investigated a former Afghan intelligence officer in 2010 who was suspected of having committed war crimes in Afghanistan. The suspect known as Amanullah Osman (now deceased) was chief of the interrogation unit of the Afghan Security Service, formally known as KAM, khAD and WAD. The unit was responsible for the arrest, interrogation and torture of individuals deemed to be a 'threat' to the government.

In a chilling account of his role as chief interrogation officer, Mr Osman told Dutch officials: "Of course there were people who were maltreated during interrogations. Naturally, I was responsible for such maltreatment, but that is how it goes in Afghanistan."

The death list only represents a small portion of Afghans killed under the Soviet-backed government, with some estimates ranging up to 50,000. The people detained and executed in prison included so-called 'Muslim fundamentalists' (Ikhwan, Khomenists), intellectuals, students, teachers, public servants, military personnel, business owners and others deemed 'suspects'.

Thirty-five years on, these frightening revelations - of which many victim families were aware at the time - send a terrifying image of how Afghan protesters and political dissidents were systematically tortured and killed.

Families of victims are now calling for those involved in the authorisation, delegation and execution of killings to be prosecuted.

In a recent visit to Kabul, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed deep concerns over President Hamid Karzai's wording of the issue: "In my discussions with the president, I noticed the emphasis he was placing on peace so I countered that it is not political expediency that is important now and that justice and human rights should not be sacrificed." When asked whether the UN would back trials against war criminals in Afghanistan, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights replied: "I would back investigations, prosecutions and trials."

This, however, seems unlikely as the Afghan government passed an Amnesty law through its parliament in 2007 which provided immunity for the prosecution of war crimes and human rights violations committed in the past 30 years. This is no surprise given that Karzai's government consists of former leaders and officials from the communist regime, not to mention countless warlords and ex-mujahidin leaders who have also been accused of committing war crimes.

Despite all of this, Afghanistan remains a party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC). Under the treaty, the ICC has the legal authority to intervene when countries are unwilling or unable to prosecute those responsible for acts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

The UN has already established independent tribunals for Rwanda, Lebanon and the former Yugoslavia for serious war crimes - the same approach must be considered for Afghanistan. Afghanistan's existing Independent Human Rights Commission is not equipped to effectively deal with the sheer enormity and severity of war crimes committed in the country. Given this reality, the International Community and the UN must work rigorously with the Afghan government to assist in the establishment of a new and independent war crimes tribunal.

Yet much of Afghanistan's co-operation with the international community, including its funding from international donors, will largely depend on the outcome of the upcoming 2014 Presidential elections. Needless to say, the conduct of free and fair elections will be pivotal if Afghanistan is able to progress democratic reforms and uphold its international aid commitments to eradicate corruption and promote human rights. Failure to meet such objectives will deter overseas aid opportunities and allow war criminals to continue to infiltrate Afghanistan's central authorities.

Addressing the issue of war crimes will, undoubtedly, be one of Afghanistan's toughest challenges to date. Having said that, much of the nation's future depends on how the Afghan government and its oppositional parties respond to such atrocities, even if it means making some tough but necessary decisions to remove its so called 'Amnesty bill' and ouster corrupt officials from office. Failing to do so will ultimately cripple a country that for so long has deprived the Afghan people of basic human rights and access to justice.

Shaheen Whyte is a former country adviser at the Refugee Review Tribunal of Australia. View his full profile here.